Beautiful
by ROSSELLA1
Summary: Tony gets a late-night visitor. Mild frostiron.
1. Chapter 1

Beautiful

By ROSSELLA1

Note: I do not own the Avengers or any of its characters.

Of all the ways Tony Stark wants to wake up, being awakened by the god of mischief standing over him is definitely not one of them. He would like to be able to say that he immediately clocks the guy out but, to tell the truth, his first reaction is to rub his eyes.

"Wha…?" He asks. In his defense, it's not every day that he wakes up to find an evil, demented, demigod that is supposed to be in some other realm standing over him.

Loki's lips curl into a sneer. "Very astute." This breaks Tony out of his stupor and he tries to get up, only to find that he can't. His entire body is pinned to the mattress.

"Jarvis!" He calls.

"Relax, Stark. I did not wish to be interrupted, so I turned your robot off." The trickster grins in a way that is definitely not reassuring, and hey, Tony thought he was the only one who could change Jarvis' settings. "We will continue our conversation, alone."

"Uh, not that I'm not dying to catch up on things with you, but aren't you supposed to be in Asgard?" Maybe if he keeps Loki talking long enough, Pepper, or Rhodey, or…well, anyone will drop by and realize that something's wrong. Of course, usually that doesn't happen in the middle of the night, but, hey, a guy can hope!

Loki snorts, waving off the statement. "Father put me on probation. I'm to be a good little boy and accompany Thor wherever he goes."

A quick glance around the room tells Tony that the thunder god isn't here. "So where's big brother?"

"I managed to convince him to spend the night with Jane Foster. " The trickster smirks. "When I snuck out, they were rather…distracted."

Ew, definitely did not need that image. "So you decided to risk Daddy's wrath to visit me? I'm touched! But, you know, I really don't think killing me is worth your freedom. Maybe you should just go home. I mean, I'll miss you but-"

Loki's lips curl into a sneer. "I'm not going to kill you. Thor's rather fond of you humans. If I killed you, he'd get angry and tell his Father on me and then I'd be right back where I started: in jail. No, I'm here for a different reason entirely." And, as if that doesn't sound sinister enough, the god reaches out and starts to unbutton the shirt that Tony had forgotten to take off when he had fallen into bed five hours earlier.

"Woah, hey!" Tony starts to struggle, even though he knows it's useless. "You know, I've sort of got this rule. No sleeping with evil demigods before the first date. Gonna at least have to buy me dinner first." He tries to keep the panic from seeping into his voice but he's not sure if he entirely succeeds.

Loki shakes his head dismissively. "You are not…unattractive, Stark, but that is not what I had in mind." Well, at least that's reassuring. "I do not have, as you put it, performance issues. You are the only mortal that the spear has failed to work with." He finishes unbuttoning Tony's shirt but hesitates for a moment.

"Yeah, well, first time-"

"I DON'T HAVE PERFORMANCE ISSUES!" Loki shrieks.

"Okay, okay! " Tony would have held up his hands to placate the maniac but, again, can't move. "Calm down, Napoleon. I just-"

"It is you!" Loki says in a tone that's much quieter, but still sort of breathless. "It is something about you that won't let my spear work and I am here to find out what it is."

"Must be my pig-headedness." Tony replies, knowing that it won't be enough to stop the villain. "Used to getting my own way."

Loki shakes his head, with a chuckle. "That would not be enough. If you are mortal and have a heart, the spear should have affected you, yet it did not. I am certain you are mortal, therefore it must be something with your heart." He pushes the fabric out of the way, still looking at Tony's face. "Perhaps a peculi-" He trails off as he catches sight of the arc-reactor.

Tony attempts to relax. He tries not to let the demigod sense how important this one piece of him is. "Yep. There it is. Not exactly your average mortal."

"I-it's beautiful. " Loki whispers, and then looks back up at Stark's face. "Wh-what is it?"

"Oh, nothing. Not really -"

Loki's eyes flash and he leans closer to Tony, looking for all the world like a petulant child who's used to getting his way. Only he has super-powers and can kill Stark with a flick of the wrist. "What. Is. It? Tell me the truth. Should you lie, I will know."

The billionaire swallows, quickly deciding that it's better to do what the man with the super-powers says. "It's an arc-reactor."

The trickster nods, letting his gaze be drawn to the reactor again. He reaches out and lets his hand slide over it, causing Tony to shiver. "What," Loki breaks off to swallow, "what is its purpose?"

"It's for decoration." Tony says. "I just wanted-" He stops as he sees the glare the god sends him. "It keeps me alive." Loki tilts his head to the side, peering down at it. "I've got shrapnel around my heart and this thing keeps it from piercing it."

"A fitting task for something so glorious." Loki breathes, running his finger around the skin on the outside of the reactor, and yeah, that's totally uncomfortable.

"Right, so, now that we're done playing show-and-tell, why don't you let Thor-"

Loki sits down on the edge of the bed. "And this…this is what stopped my spear from claiming you?"

"That's what he said." Tony shrugs. Loki narrows his eyes inquisitively. "Yes."

The demigod shakes his head and let's runs his hand over the reactor. "Then this is powerful technology indeed! And it's so beautiful!"

"Y-yeah." Tony wishes he could shift as the trickster all but pets the area of his chest around the reactor, before touching the thing itself again. "You said that already." Loki takes no notice of him. "Look, I'm glad you like it and all, but could you uh…stop…doing that? It's getting sort of uncomfortable."

Loki looks up at him and smirks. "What? This?" He moves his hand off the reactor and over the bare skin.

"Yeah. That."

"Something so glorious-" Loki begins, but is cut off as a loud peal of thunder ripped the air.

There's a smashing sound and the god of thunder breaks through the window. "LOKI!"

Loki rises, holding his hands in the air. "Peace, brother, I have not harmed your _precious_ little friend."

Thor glances over at Tony. "You are unharmed, friend Stark?"

"Yeah." Tony grumbles. "Can't say the same about my window, though. Next time, just use the door."

Thor flushes. "I apologize. _Loki_, " He gives his brother a pointed glare, to which the trickster rolls his eyes "is not supposed to leave my side. When I tracked him to your home, I thought perhaps he meant to do you harm."

"Please," Loki scoffs, "I just wanted to see what makes him so special." His face loses some of its scorn and he glances down at the reactor. "It is even more wondrous then I had imagined."

Thor follows his gaze and gasps. "Your chest! It has-"

"Yeah, I know."

"But how-"

"Look, point blank, I'm tired. I already explained it to your bro and I kinda don't feel like doing it again tonight. Stop by tomorrow and I'll fill you in, okay?"

Thor nods, looking contrite. "Of course. I apologize on my brother's behalf. We will return tomorrow." He steps forward and takes hold of his brother's arm. "Loki?"

"Fine." The trickster huffs, snapping his fingers. The windows magically fix themselves and, with a flash, the two are gone and Tony's able to move.

The first thing he does is to reboot Jarvis. "Sir, are you alright? Loki-"

"Yeah, I know. I'm fine."

"Would you like me to call S.H.I.E.L.D on your behalf?"

"No." Tony yawns. "Just see if you can get any traces of magic off the windows; I think we'll be needing to build that into our defenses if this is going to become a regular thing."

"I couldn't agree more. Is there anything else?"

"No, I'm just going to sleep. Night, sweet pea.

"Sweet dreams, sir."

It's only after Tony turns the lights off and lays back down that he realizes that Thor had said "we".


	2. Chapter 2

Ch. 2

By ROSSELLA1

Note: I do not own the Avengers or any of its characters.

True to his word, Thor returns the next day and brings Loki. Tony wouldn't mind this, except for the fact that the trickster god won't look him in the eye. Instead, he's staring at the faint glow that's coming through Tony's shirt. It's just plain creepy. But he knows that, if he says anything, Loki will probably keep on doing it just to annoy him. So, instead, Tony pretends he doesn't notice.

Like a good host, he offers them drinks and has them sit down. Thor and he shoot the breeze for a while. They ask each other the usual questions like, "What have you been up to?", and, "How many lives have you saved lately?". Loki just stares at Tony's chest like it's the most fascinating thing he's ever seen. And finally Thor gets down to it.

"So, Stark. You promised you would tell me how you came to possess the…" Thor gestures towards Tony's chest, clearly not having a word for the reactor.

"Arc-reactor." Tony supplies.

Loki leans in, still gazing at it. "Is that what it's called?"

"Yeah. Cool name, huh?"

"It does have a certain…ring to it." The trickster replies, nodding slowly.

"Yeah." Tony shrugs. "So, it all started when I almost died. Some terrorists were hired to kill me."

Thor rises to his feet, a stormy look on his face. "By whom? Tell me and that person will never see another day!"

"Oh, don't worry." Tony assures, gesturing for his friend to sit back down. "He's dead." Thor sits back down, looking as if he doesn't know whether to be relieved or disappointed. "But that's not important." He's not about to open his heart about Obadiah with Loki in the room. "Anyway, they dropped a bomb on me, but then realized who I was and decided that I was worth more to them alive than dead. See, they wanted me to make them this weapon that could destroy… well, I won't go into details in case Hitler here gets any ideas." Thor frowns as if he knows that he should be offended on his brother s behalf but doesn't quite understand the reference. Loki just keeps on staring at the glow. "They took me to this cave, where a doctor was able to take care of me." Now Loki's tilted his head to the side, as if seeing the glow from a different angle will give him an entirely new perspective to it, and damn that's uncomfortable! But Tony decides to just continue with his story. "Thing was, there was a bunch of shrapnel from the explosion that he couldn't get out without killing me. So he built this." Tony taps the arc- reactor, causing it to ping, and causing Loki's jaw to drop open, as if he's just heard the most beautiful symphony in the world. The trickster leans forward. "It keeps the shrapnel from reaching my heart."

Thor looks impressed. "I must meet this Doctor to congratulate him on a most worthy and powerful invention."

Tony's eyes drop. "You can't." He says, trying to keep the emotion from his tone. He'll never be able to speak of Yinsin casually. "He's…he died when we were trying to escape."

Loki makes a horrified squeal and leans forward even more. "The creator of this wondrous thing is dead?"

Thor reaches forward to place a hand on Tony's shoulder. "I apologize. I did not mean to drag up unpleasant memories."

"Yeah, well, it happens." Tony replies. Swallowing, he uses Loki's obsession to segue into normal conversation. "Hey, Dory, you mind not staring at the shiny-glowy thing? You're lucky I'm not a chick or I might get offended."

Loki looks up at his face for once, eyes narrowing in confusion. "What?"

"Stop staring at my chest, okay?" Tony clarifies. "It's creeping me out."

Thor turns to his brother. "Perhaps you should concentrate on something else."

Loki gives a disappointed frown. "Fine." He huffs, as if they have just asked him to do the most unreasonable thing he can imagine.

"I apologize." Thor turns his attention back to Tony. "We do not have technology such as your, 'arc-reactor', in Asgard."

"Oh…uh…that's fine. Just, you know, making me uncomfortable." Tony shrugs. "So, what do you want to do, now?" He might not know Thor that well, but he figures that the guy's only on Earth once every few months, they might as well have team bonding time. Minus four teammates and plus one enemy.

As it turns out, Jane's been pretty negligent in teaching E.T about Earthly culture. Incredibly, Thor's been to Earth six times and he's never had pizza or watched television. So, the next couple of hours are spent eating every type of pizza Papa Johns has to offer and alternating between South Park and Spongebob. Thor watches the shows with avid interest, devouring this new experience.

Loki, on the other hand, has apparently already seen enough television for him to find the shows boring. The trickster settles for sighing and looking around the room at various objects, then sighing again, then looking around at the same objects. At least for the first half hour or so. And then, Loki finds something new to be fascinated with. Tony's face.

They're halfway through, Fatbeard, when Tony notices Loki staring at him intensely. "What? Got something on my face?" Tony asks, running his hand over his chin. Nope, everything's fine. Loki merely shakes his head, eyes following the path of Tony's hand. "So what is it?"

The trickster smirks. "You forced me to stop gazing at the most beautiful thing in this room, so I chose the second most beautiful thing to look at. Is that a problem?"

Figuring the god's just trying to push his buttons, Tony rolls his eyes. "Nope. Whatever floats your boat." He goes back to watching the movie, thinking that, if he ignores Loki long enough, the god will find something else to amuse himself with. The trickster doesn't.

….

It shouldn't surprise Tony (although it does) when, that night, after Pinky and the Brain have left and he's been asleep for hours, he suddenly hears the doorbell ring.

"Jarvis!" Tony calls.

"Yes, sir."

"Who the fuck is ringing the doorbell at three in the fucking morning?"

"Actually, it is 3:43, sir, and that would be Mr. Odinson and…the other Mr. Odinson."

Tony wonders whether he's destined to be awoken by demigods every night for the rest of his life. "Let them in and tell them to come up; I don't feel like getting out of bed." He decides. If Thor's with Loki, this time, it might actually be something important and Tony's not such a dick that he's going to let his friend go up against something alone because he wants to get some sleep.

He hears the front door open and Jarvis inviting the brothers inside. Loki and Thor are arguing over something, but Tony can't make out the words and, when they do get close enough that he'd be able to hear, they fall silent.

His door slides open and Tony winces as Thor's voice booms. "Friend Stark! I apologize for the late visit, but Loki insists that he has something he wishes to discuss with you."  
"Yeah, well, life of a superhero, right?" Tony drags himself into a sitting position.

"Shall I turn the lights on, sir?" Jarvis asks.

"I guess so, but keep them dim."

"Of course, sir." Jarvis complies.

"So, what is it?" Tony asks, blinking at the trickster as the two demigods make their way towards his bed. "I'm not letting you touch the arc-reactor again if that's what you want."

"I have news that I wish to tell you." Loki replies. "However," he glances at Thor, "I would prefer to do so in private."

"As I have already stated," Thor looks back at Loki with firm expression, "you are not to leave my sight for any longer than is absolutely necessary."

"I'm not going to harm him!" Loki protests.

"That's reassuring, coming from the god of lies." Tony quips. Neither of them give any sign that they've heard him.

"Be that as it may, I cannot leave." Thor repeats.

"This doesn't-" Loki begins, but Tony cuts him off.

"You know, Edward Cullen, someone woke me up in the middle of last night and I'm sort of tired, can you just spit out whatever you have to say so that I can get back to sleep?"

Thor tilts his head to the side. "There is no Edw-"

"Pop-culture reference." Tony interrupts. "I was talking to Loki."

The trickster gives a huff and turns to Tony. "Alright. Stark," his face takes on a dignified look, as if he's about to bestow a great honor on Tony, "you are a most powerful man. With your suit, you have near-godlike qualities. Without it, you are far stronger and more intelligent than the average human. In addition, you have the most beautiful object I have ever seen in the center of your chest. Your face and the rest of your body are also attractive. I have decided to make you my bedmate."

"Um…" Tony replies uncomfortably. Thor looks both embarrassed and horrified.

"Now," Loki continues, turning to Thor, "if you will give Mr. Stark and me some time alone-"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa," Tony speaks up, holding his palms up in the air, "I never said I agreed!" Loki narrows his eyes, as if in confusion. "I mean, thanks for all the nice and sort of creepy compliments, and I totally get why you want to sleep with me, I mean, who wouldn't, right? But, no. I'm going to have to pass."

"Pass?"

"Yeah. You know, decline?"

By the dumbfounded look Loki gives him, Tony doesn't think the god understands. "Decline?"

"Uh-huh. Look, I'm sure once you get past the whole, demented-super-villain-bent-on-taking-over-the –world-thing, you're a great guy, but it just wouldn't work out, okay?" Tony shrugs. "It's not me. It's you."

"But I'm a Prince!" Loki protests.

"I know." Tony replies.

"So why won't you let me have you? What possible objection could you have?"

"Well, you tried to conquer my planet, you killed a friend of mine, and you're an even bigger narcissist than I am." Tony really thinks that these should be obvious, but guess not.

"But I'm a Prince and I want you!" Loki repeats.  
"We've established that." Tony rolls his eyes. "So?"

"So, you should be flattered that I chose you!" Now, the trickster just sounds like a spoiled brat. And he's holding that staff-thingy like he's about to do something with it. Which, Tony thinks, is a rather uncomfortable way to think of it, but it's too late to change the phrasing.

Thankfully, Thor steps forward, placing a hand on his brother's shoulder. "Loki," he reminds his brother, "we are not in Asgard." He turns to Tony. "You must forgive my brother. On Asgard, any man or woman would be flattered to be selected as the concubine of a Prince. Loki forgets," Thor glares at his brother, "that not everyone is so willing."

"Uh-huh." Tony nods. "Well, uh…it was, uh…nice seeing you. Make sure you stop by again before you leave."

Thor nods understandingly. "Of course. I apologize for intruding and for my brother's presumptions."

"No, that's fine; just…try not to come during the day next time." Tony wants to add that Thor should come without his brother, but thinks that this probably won't happen. "Uh, good luck with the search for love, Loki. I suggest you try the red light district."

"Until next time, Friend Stark." Thor nods to him and turns to Loki. "Come Loki," he says gently, "we will try this red light district of which he speaks. Perhaps you will meet a suitable mate there." He pushes on Loki's shoulders until the god tears his gaze away from Tony and turns around. The two gods make their way out of the room, Loki, in apparently stunned silence, while Thor whispers reassurances.

"Jarvis?" Tony asks, laying back down when he hears the front door shut. "Add 'being propositioned in the middle of the night by evil demigods' to the list of why I hate my life."

"Already done, Sir."


	3. Chapter 3

Ch. 3

By ROSSELLA1

Note: I do not own the Avengers or any of its characters.

There are no interruptions for the rest of the night. Or the next. Or the next. However, while there are no interruptions on the third night, the third _day_ is a different story. It's not a visitation. The Asgardian brothers stop visiting and Tony can't help but wonder whether Thor embarrassed by his brother's behavior. The billionaire's glad he doesn't have to deal with the awkwardness of seeing Loki and trying to make conversation after the trickster's proposition, but he hopes that Thor will drop by before he leaves Earth. Tony doesn't know the big guy very well, but he's already gotten sort of attached. But that's all beside the point. On the third day, Tony wakes up, goes into his lab, and finds a very large package waiting for him.

Seriously, the package is a good seven feet tall and three feet wide. And it's done up in shiny green wrapping paper with red ribbon and everything. At first, Tony thinks that he forgot some anniversary and starts to ask Jarvis whether he should get Pepper a diamond bracelet or a private island. And then the package starts yelling. Well, perhaps yelling's a bit generous. Yelling implies that actual words are being spoken, while this is more like a cross between a moan and a panicked hum. Tony spends about ten seconds staring at the thing, mouth open. Then, he jumps into action. Obviously something is alive in there, but what? He puts on his suit (because, hey! It could be dangerous!) and then has Dummy unwrap the thing. Of all the possibilities that run through his mind of what the contents could be, a scared, disoriented, and very much alive Phil Coulson is not one of them. But that's what it (or rather, he) is.

Tony has Jarvis run some scans and it's quickly determined that the man is really and truly Phil Coulson. So, Tony does what any self-respecting, narcissistic super-hero would do. He embraces the hero, tells a big sob story about how Tony had never thought he'd see Phil alive again, and then pretends that he couldn't care less that the guy's back. Phil insists on contacting S.H.E.I.L.D, who arrive within ten minutes of the call (Tony suspects that they were camped out in his backyard all along), and take Tony's gift, wrapping paper and all, back to their base.

After they're gone, Tony goes back to work and, if he's happier than usual, it has nothing to do with the fact that Phil came back to life. The next day, he goes to the television room first, deciding to have an all-day movie marathon, and he finds another package. He has Jarvis scan it and, after determining that it's not a threat, he opens it to find a box set of quality pornos. Sure, he could easily have afforded to buy them himself, but it's the thought that counts. Of course, there's no note, but Tony's got his suspicions about a certain evil demigod. He'd send a thank-you note, but he doesn't want to encourage Loki's attentions. So, instead, he just spends the day in front of the television, watching the movies and jerking off.

The next day, Tony walks into his lab and finds another box. He doesn't even bother to have Jarvis scan it this time. It's a lump of some type of metal that Tony's never seen before. After analyzing it, he determines that it's not from Earth and that it's malleable when heated but, once cooled, is harder than any substance known to man. Well, this leads to some fascinating new advances in technology (that Tony plans on keeping to himself for the time being; hey, Iron Man deserves some new toys! And they're going to be used to save the world anyway!).

After that, the gifts continue. A case to protect the arc reactor. A newspaper article that mentions numerous towns being saved by a green man with horns. Even (and Tony's not sure he wants to know how Loki managed this one) an eight-legged horse. If it wasn't for the fact that the gifts are being left by the Maniacal Wizard of Oz, Tony would think he was trapped in a modern version of the Twelve Days of Christmas.

Sadly, while Tony enjoys the free stuff, he knows it's got to end. Loki's still an evil demigod (who at least was, probably still is) bent on taking over the world. It's only a matter of time before the trickster starts expecting something in return and, while Tony's put out for a lot less, he doesn't want to find out what happens to people who try to one-night-stand Loki. So, it's with a heavy heart that he has Jarvis look up Jane Foster's number and dial it for him.

The phone rings thrice before it's answered. "Hello?" A woman's voice says.

"Hey, Ms. Foster? This is Tony Stark, I was wondering if a certain god of Thunder was around?"

"Tony Stark? As in Ironman? Owner of Stark Industries?"

"Yeah, and genius, billionaire, sexy, etc. Heard lots about you, too. Is Thor there?" Tony knows he's not making the best first impression, but he'd rather just get the whole 'I don't want to sleep with your brother' conversation over with.

"Umm…yeah…we're watching….THOR!" Tony winces as she yells into the phone. "Here he comes… and here he is." There's the sound of the phone being transferred. "It's Tony Stark. He's an ass."

"Friend Stark!" Thor's voice booms into the phone. "I am glad to hear from you. How have you fared since our last visit?"

"Um…good…how have you…uh, fared?"

"Excellent!" Thor shouts. " Midgard has many entertainments!"

"Good. I'm glad you're having fun. Listen…is there any way you could stop by today? I've got something to talk to Loki about."

"Indeed!" Thor booms again. "We will be over as soon as we can!"

"Thanks. And…uh…Thor? You know you don't need to shout, right?"

There's a pause. "But how else will you hear me? You being so far away."

"Just trust me on it."

"Okay." Thor says softer. "Did you hear me?"

"Yes."

"Marvelous!" Thor's tone is awestruck.

"Yeah, well, see you soon." Tony says.

"See you soon." And they hang up.


End file.
